Covid – Lanka Talents

France’s President Macron tests positive for Covid

Lanka Talents Creation — Fri, 18 Dec 2020 02:59:34 +0000

It said the president took a test “as soon as the first symptoms appeared.”

The brief statement did not say what symptoms Macron experienced.

It said he would isolate himself for seven days.

“He will continue to work and take care of his activities at a distance,” it added.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/17/french-president-macron-tests-positive-for-covid

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Qatar World Cup venue to open with 50% COVID-recovered fans

Lanka Talents Creation — Tue, 08 Dec 2020 05:57:29 +0000

Al-Rayyan, Qatar: Qatar will launch its latest completed World Cup stadium with a domestic fixture at which half of tickets will be reserved for fans who have recovered from coronavirus, the country’s FA said Monday.

The Al-Rayyan Venue, the third new stadium to be completed ahead of 2022, will host the domestic Amir Cup final on December 18 and will welcome around half of its 40,000 capacity.

“Anyone who enters the stadium must return either a negative Covid-19 test or a positive Covid-19 antibodies test,” Abdul Wahab al-Musleh, Qatar’s deputy chief medical officer, said in a statement issued by the QFA.

“About 50 percent of the available seats will be allocated to people who have previously contracted the virus.”

Fans will be required to undergo tests at one of three locations where their ticket application will be linked to their national identity cards and phone number.

Fans will then be eligible for a non-transferable ticket once they receive the required test result.

Once inside, fans will be required to wear a mask, show their contact tracing app, and stay in their allocated seat.

“This is the first time Qatar has hosted a match on this scale under such exceptional circumstances,” added Musleh.

Qatar has slowly been welcoming fans back to stadiums, permitting attendances of up to 30 percent in the top-flight Qatar Stars League.

The Amir Cup final will see favourites Al-Sadd, coached by Spain legend Xavi Hernandez, take on minnows Al-Arabi.

Al-Rayyan, located 24 kilometres (15 miles) west of the capital Doha, will host seven matches during Qatar 2022 up to and including the round of 16 stage.

Its glowing facade will feature patterns suggestive of Qatari themes including the importance of family, the desert, and local flora and fauna.

Qatar has so far inaugurated new-build Al-Janoub and Education City stadiums alongside the refurbished Khalifa ground.

After Al-Rayyan opens, only Lusail, Al-Bayt, Ras Abu Aboud and Thumama stadiums remain to be opened.

World Cup 2022 chief executive Nasser al-Khater said recently that all of the stadiums should be complete by the end of 2021 or beginning of 2022.

Qatar last week marked 10 years since it was named host of the 2022 tournament.

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COVID මාරයාට සමුදෙන කාලය අතළඟ…?

Lanka Talents Creation — Thu, 26 Nov 2020 08:19:16 +0000

Hong Kong and Singapore postponed the world’s first quarantine-free travel bubble for two weeks after a surge of new coronavirus infections in Hong Kong, a setback for their flagship airlines and tourism businesses looking to kickstart a recovery.

The governments delayed the inaugural flights, scheduled to depart Sunday, because of the spike of local infections in Hong Kong, Edward Yau, the city’s secretary for commerce and economic development, said Saturday.

Singapore Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung said on his Facebook page that he spoke to Yau on Saturday and they decided to defer the plan.

“I can fully understand the disappointment and frustration of travelers who have planned their trips,” he said, noting that airlines would be contacting travelers. “This is a sober reminder that the Covid-19 virus is still with us, and even as we fight to regain our normal lives, the journey will be full of ups and downs.”

Rising Caseload

Under the current agreement between the two financial hubs, the arrangement is suspended for two weeks if the seven-day moving average of unlinked cases rises to five in either city. The average in Hong Kong rose to 3.9 on Saturday from 2.1 a day earlier. Singapore hasn’t reported any local transmissions since Nov. 10.

The details of the formal re-introduction of the plan will be announced early next month, Yau said.

Hong Kong reported 43 new virus cases Saturday, the most in three months. The figure included 13 locally transmitted infections whose source was untraceable, suggesting there may be super-spreaders in the city.

Earlier Saturday, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore had said the travel bubble plan would go ahead as planned. Hong Kong has a “comprehensive public health surveillance system” and the overall incidence rate is still low, the aviation authority said.

It updated the statement later in the day, saying the decision to delay was taken “to safeguard public health in both cities as well as travelers’ own health.”

Travelers can still take regular flights, subject to the normal border control and health requirements in each city, the CAAS said.

– Bloomberg

The post COVID මාරයාට සමුදෙන කාලය අතළඟ…? appeared first on Lanka Talents.

Covid-19: World’s top latex glove maker shuts factories

Lanka Talents Creation — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 05:21:02 +0000

The world’s largest maker of latex gloves will shut more than half of its factories after almost 2,500 employees tested positive for coronavirus.

Malaysia’s Top Glove will close down 28 plants in phases as it seeks to control the outbreak, authorities said.

The company has seen record profits this year as demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) surged around the world.

But shares in Top Glove fell by 7.5% on Tuesday after the announcement.

Malaysia’s health ministry has reported a sharp rise in cases in areas where Top Glove factories and dormitories are located.

Nearly 5,800 workers have been screened so far with 2,453 testing positive, it said.

Top Glove operates 41 factories in Malaysia with many of its workers coming from Nepal and living in crowded dormitory complexes.

“All those who tested positive have been hospitalised and their close contacts have been quarantined to avoid infecting other workers,” Director-General of Health Noor Hisham Abdullah told Reuters news agency.

It is unclear when the factory closures will begin.

Top Glove has been in the spotlight for its working conditions in recent months.

In July, the United States banned the import of gloves from two of the firm’s subsidiaries over allegations of forced labour.

A recent report from the US Department of Labour also raised these concerns, pointing to the high recruitment fees overseas migrant workers must pay to secure employment in the rubber glove industry which often results in debt bondage.

In September, migrant workers told the Los Angeles Times about difficult working conditions at Top Glove factories, describing 72-hour work weeks, cramped living conditions and low wages.

A few weeks later, Top Glove said it had raised it remediation payments to compensate its migrant workers for recruitment fees after recommendations from an independent consultant.

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Covid-19 pandemic: Merkel ‘worried’ about vaccines for poor countries

Lanka Talents Creation — Mon, 23 Nov 2020 08:30:44 +0000

Germany’s chancellor has raised concerns about the world’s poorest securing access to Covid-19 vaccines.

Angela Merkel was speaking at a G20 summit which saw leaders promise a fair distribution of jabs.

But Mrs Merkel warned progress was slow, saying she would raise the matter with global vaccine alliance GAVI.

“We will now speak with GAVI about when these negotiations will begin because I am somewhat worried that nothing has been done on that yet,” she said.

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